Trojans struggle with Panthers for three quarters, pull away in fourth

By Teddy Feinberg/tfeinberg@lcsun-news.com

Posted:
10/12/2012 10:19:10 PM MDT

The Gadsden Panthers and Mayfield Trojans were in a competitive football game for three quarters Friday night.

Gadsden led 14-7 in the second period and the score was tied 14-14 at halftime.

The second half saw Mayfield drive the field for a touchdown, only to have Gadsden respond with a scoring march of its own to tie things back up 21-21.

The Trojans would go ahead 28-21 heading into the fourth quarter, however, and outscored the Panthers 23-0 in the final period to pull away with a 51-21 victory.

The Trojans, who are now 4-3 on the season, ran the football at will and wore out the Panthers (3-4 record) down the stretch. Mayfield recorded 53 carries for 409 yards on the evening. Marcus Inglemon (15 carries, 122 yards, three touchdowns), Kavika Johnson (eight carries, 92 yards, two touchdowns) and David Stookie (14 carries, 94 yards) led the way for Mayfield.

Regardless, for most of the game, the close score was shocking.

In a district rivalry that's long resembled a David (Mayfield) vs. Goliath (Gadsden) atmosphere, the Trojans visited Anthony slumping through most of their season. That, and Gadsden's .500 record served as a major early-season accomplishment for a Panthers program that's often struggled to find wins.

Still, it was the District 3-5A kickoff and the Trojans figure to be a top-two team in league play - Las Cruces High appears to be the consensus No. 1 at this point.

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The Trojans will get their bye next week before regrouping to face Oñate at the Field of Dreams on Oct. 26. A road game at Alamogordo follows before Mayfield wraps up its regular season against Las Cruces High on Nov. 9.

As for Gadsden, a .500 season wouldn't just be astounding, but looks like a possibility. While the Panthers will have their hands full in its totality against Las Cruces High on Nov. 1, two teams they should be competitive with - Oñate and Alamogordo - await on the schedule.

The Panthers come north to Las Cruces to take on the Knights next Friday and will then host the Tigers on Oct. 26.